Arrangements are being made for the 2nd International Hindko Conference organised by the Gandhara Hindko Board (GHB) here on November 17.
Besides noted figures from all over the country delegates from abroad will also participate and present papers at the two-day conference being held at Archives Hall, said Senior Vice-Chairman of the board, Dr Adnan Gul, speaking at a press conference on Sunday. Flanked by General Secretary of the board, Mohammad Ziauddin, and other office-bearers, including Shahid Yousaf and Ziaul Haq Sardi the GHB representative said scholars and researchers would present papers on 42 varied subjects. Delegates from the United States, United Kingdom, Turkey and Iran are expected besides noted figures from different parts of the country, he added.
“Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Masood Kausar is expected to be the chief guest at the opening session of first day while Chief Minister Ameer Haider Hoti would be the chief guest on the second day”, he said and added four sessions would be held daily. He said a Hindko Mushaira or poetry recital session and poster presentation would also be part of the event besides a Hindko folklore programme.
He said other dignitaries would preside over different sessions. They would include writers and former provincial chief secretaries of the province, Ijaz Rahim and Abdullah, Minister for Sports, Tourism, Archives, Museums and Youth Affairs, Syed Aqil Shah and Senator Farhat Abbas.
General Secretary of the board, Muhammad Ziauddin, said five awards would be also be conferred on those rendering services for the oldest living cityof the South Asia, Peshawar. Shaheed police officer Safwat Ghayur has been nominated for the Gandhara Shahidan-e-Peshawar Shujaat Award; founding chairman of GHB and noted columnist late Dr Zahoor Ahmad Awan for Sain Ahmad Ali Award; trade leader Halim Jan Sethi for Dr Zahoor Ahmad Awan Award and Dr Elahi Bakhsh Awan for Gandhara Lifetime Achievement Award while the name for the fifth award, Chacha Younus Award, was yet to be finalised by the scrutiny committee.
Ziauddin, a noted Hindko writer and poet, who specialises in research and documentation, said the provincial government was providing financial and other support for the conference that was aimed at strengthening harmony among communities speaking different languages and practicing various cultures.
He said the conference would send a positive message across the world that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was the land of the peace-loving people, which was culturally rich. He said the moot would prove that efforts for language and culture promotion were being made despite difficulties and that people of the region had great love for mother tongues and respective cultures.
The Gandhara Hindko Board has been working for the promotion of Hindko language and literature for the last 20 years and it has to its credit 50 books along with several literary and cultural programmes for the promotion of Hindko language and literature, he added.
